POLITICS >Chamber expects an apology from France

Severoğlu, the head of Gaziantep Architects’ Chamber, claims that France owes an apology to the city. DHA photo

French soldiers used Turkish children in Gaziantep as war prisoners after World War I, the head of Gaziantep Architects’ Chamber said, calling the incident a humanitarian crime that France must apologize to the city for.

Sıtkı Severoğlu claimed the chamber had historical documents showing that French soldier had used children as prisoners of war, felled trees and overlooked the plunder of the town’s historical artifacts.

Compensation for humanitarian crimes

“France owes an apology and compensation to Gaziantep due to these humanitarian crimes,” said Severoğlu.

Retired Gen. Dursun Bak also said they had started a project to lighten the defense of Gaziantep against the French forces in World War I and brought 2,812 documents from France. Severoğlu said the documents dated back to 1920 and show that Turkish children were used in the exchange of a Senegalese soldier from Turks during Turkey’s independence war.

He also said a British archeologist, Leonard Woolley, has started excavation at Karkamış in 1912, 1914 and 1919.